A. Wong to reopen from the 10th October following refurbishment

15 years ago, British Chef Andrew Wong took over the kitchen and stewardship of his parents’ restaurant in London’s Pimlico, renaming it A.Wong in their honour – Annie and Albert. Since then, he has presented a cuisine that is an intuitive expression of tradition, authenticity and craftsmanship. In 2017, A.Wong was awarded its first Michelin star, with a second in January 2021 – a milestone in global Chinese gastronomy as the first restaurant outside Asia to have garnered this accolade.

This year, in August 2026, the restaurant closed for a complete refurbishment, back and front of house, and will reopen on the 10th October with a new look, new kitchen and new menu. Before construction even began, Andrew began developing a new version of his Collections of China menu. Inspired by contemporary fine dining within China, he wanted to explore what tradition means in modern Chinese cuisine. This new menu celebrates the classical textures, flavours and tastes revered there, yet rarely found outside the wider diaspora.

It’s also inspired by his own research in Beijing and Shanghai. It will focus on traditional cooking in its purest form and how the cuisine has evolved in contemporary leading kitchens across the country, allowing for greater creative and personal expression.

Slow-simmered stocks that become rich or delicate broths with the careful measure of aged components like fermented soy or tangerine peel; collagen-rich ingredients prized for their soft, yielding mouthfeel that bring wellness and heritage; the celebrated ‘Q’ or elastic resistance found in hand pulled noodles; contrasts of crisp and soft that comes from tender chicken meat and lacquered skin; clay-jar mother brines that boost delicate stewed fish; condiments that anchor intricate braises and pickle preparations that offer palate cleansing highs of both earthy, effervescent tangs or sharp tartness.

What has emerged are dishes, for example, such as stuffed sea cucumber with prawns and Cantonese crispy pork skin; whole pickled chilli steamed turbot; ‘milk less’ white fish broth; pineapple and beef candied floss; chilled sweet potato noodles with red sugar and Jujube syrup; century egg with pickled ginger and chilli chutney; or whole shredded baby chicken salad with rehydrated bean curd sticks.

For those that still remain connected to the dishes they have grown to love as Collections of China, these will now be found in the Collections of A.Wong menu.

Andrew’s à la carte dim sum lunch will remain.

A whole new approach has been installed in the interiors, with a complete rethink of the restaurant’s flow and evolution. As guests arrive at the reception, they enter the main restaurant with a glass panel straight ahead that immediately draws the eye into Andrew’s new show kitchen. To the left, a row of tables specifically placed to further those views and to the right, an entrance to a newly installed 12-seat private dining room with additional restaurant seating along a curved banquette.

Designed in conjunction with Gareth Sefton from SHW Design, the kitchen has been months in planning to provide not only a highly functional, high-energy professional kitchen, but also, through the addition of plate glass display windows, one that now offers enticing views of the spectacle that makes Chinese cooking so exciting to watch.

The restaurant interior has been developed in collaboration with the London and New York-based architecture and design firm Michaelis Boyd. Soft velvet seating comes in shades of twilight blue on banquettes and honey gold on Art Nouveau-inspired dining chairs. Dark walnut-stained oak flooring and walnut and burr elm finishes in joinery unify the spaces. Light jade-coloured Kit Kat tiles and marble-veined worktops reflect China’s connection to this ancient stone.

Two specific artworks have also been commissioned.

The first feature, a ceiling light, has been created in collaboration with the acclaimed London-based stained-glass and leaded-light specialist, John Reyntiens Studio. John and his team worked closely with Andrew to create the circular ceiling centrepiece that emulates the Manzhou windows found in Guangzhou’s old dim sum houses. A 180cm flat piece of work, it has been cleverly designed to appear convex when illuminated. Between 2018 and 2022, Reyntiens Glass Studio were responsible for restoring the glass in the landmark Elizabeth Tower, culminating in the unveiling of the new clock faces for Big Ben in 2022.

The second feature is a five-panel mural by French artist Claire Basler that runs the length of one wall, commissioned with the generous support of The Lee Kum Kee Family. Her work focuses on ethereal landscapes and floral compositions that epitomise her belief in nature as a healer, muse, provider and protector.